Cross Country Walkers
by la-alexia
Summary: A high school cross-country team runs into Middle Earth while mapping out a trail. Being new to Middle Earth and knowing absolutely nothing about their predicament forces the team to travel with the Fellowship.
1. Chapter 1

CHAPTER 1

"I think we're lost." Nick said simply.

"No shit Sherlock." John replied, staring into Nick's dark eyes with his brown ones, "But if I had the map, like I _usually_ do, we wouldn't be lost." He flicked an annoyed gaze towards Anthony, the map bearer.

Anthony rolled his eyes in frustration and shouted angrily at John "We are n-n-not l-l-l-ost."

"If we're not l-l-l-lost, then what do you call not knowing where you are in the middle of the woods?" John muttered under his breath. He was rather annoyed at the whole situation, he hated courses that had lots of woods in them, it was more difficult to tell how far he had run and whether or not he was getting close to the finish line.

No reply came from the rest of the cross-country team. Worry was beginning to build among the group; what if they didn't make it to the starting line in time?

"Give me the map." Andie ordered shortly. Andie was the only girl with the group; the girls cross country team had ditched her earlier and had already walked the course and warmed up for the race. Andie had dark red hair and dangerously bright green eyes. She was more comfortable around men than women; she couldn't stand female cattiness.

"N-n-n-no, w-w-what are you g-g-gonna do with it?" Anthony asked her. Anthony was slightly awkward being six feet, sixteen and not very muscular. He was usually on the receiving end of pranks and the punch line of jokes due to his unfortunate stutter. John and Nick, who were also known as the terrible twosome, had given him the map earlier in the afternoon knowing Anthony would make a fool of himself.

Andie sighed and held out her hand, "Just give it to me."

Anthony stared at Andie and then ignored her completely. Andie glared at her fellow red head as she placed her hands on her hips.

"Look," Chris said, finally deciding to intervene, "How about we just turn around and go back the way we came. When it's race time, we'll just follow the person in front of us." He smiled at everyone, looking for a sign of agreement. Chris was generally the one the team looked up to, as a senior he was co-captain of the team.

The team all nodded and shrugged their shoulders in agreement, except for Anthony.

"W-w-well w-w-what about A-a-alex," he asked, glancing at the raven-haired boy's direction, "he's always in f-f-first, who's he g-g-going to follow?"

"Um…"Chris's turned towards Alex, who promptly shrugged his shoulders in response. Alex co-captained the team along with Chris. He had jet-black hair that contrasted with electric blue eyes. He had a smile that could melt a girl's heart. Unfortunately for the ladies, he was more of a quiet lead-by-example type and wasn't known to be a partier.

"I've been here before, I know the course."

The faces of the team stared at him in disbelief.

"So, would you happen to know where we are?" Nick asked dumbfounded.

"Yup." Alex replied shortly.

"And you didn't feel the need to point us in the right direction?" Andie asked, not really understanding his logic.

Alex shrugged his shoulders.

"Why not? I mean, I know it's great fun to watch A-a-a-anthony try and stumble his way through the course, but we _are_ cutting it kinda close time wise." Nick stated, just slightly confused.

"It's funny to watch you people."

"Oh yea, loads of laughs." John said sarcastically.

"Yea actually," Alex retorted, "follow me."

With that said, Alex took off at a slight jog, his brown bag bouncing off of his back. The team took off after him. They talked amongst themselves, Nick talking to John about paintball, Anthony trying to jump in on their conversation every once in a while. Chris and Andie jogged in silence along with Alex.

Alex picked up the pace after a while, everyone else following suit. As they continued their run, the area became slightly rockier. There was a stream somewhere off in the distance, its soft fall upon the rocks made a peaceful almost magical sound.

Andie looked through the trees as she ran, searching for the water source. After a couple seconds she spotted it and was amazed at its beauty. The water was the clearest she had ever seen; it was so pure she could see the brown and gray pebbles beneath its surface. She followed the river with her eyes, until it dropped off into what she presumed was a waterfall.

Alex turned towards the water just before it dropped off the short cliff and then stopped. The cross country team stopped behind him and stood around him.

"The quickest way back is across the water," he said as he pointed out across the river. He turned towards the team behind him "Your feet are going to get wet." He then started off again, running through the water, very close to the falls. The clear liquid splashed up around him as he ran through, it was only up to his mid-calf. The river was not very wide, but it took Alex a minute to cross it.

The rest of the team went out after him. Andie ran behind Chris with Nick, John and Anthony running a few paces behind her. The water was cool on their feet and part of their legs, it was refreshing and suddenly the team's legs felt alive and rejuvenated. As they ran along the edge of the falls, Andie peeked over to see the bottom.

"Wow…" she muttered in awe as she saw the water crashing at the bottom. It splashed down into the river below; it was not very loud like other waterfalls she had seen, in fact, it almost sounded like it was singing. In fact, she could've sworn that there _was_ something singing.

That was when she saw it, a figure below the trees, with blond hair. Around him (she assumed it was a him) were seven other figures. Five of them appeared to be children except one of them had a red beard. The other two were rather tall, grubby looking men.

"Hey," Andie said as she poked Chris in the back whilst continuing to run, "look down there."

Chris turned his head as he continued to jog. He suddenly stopped in front of Andie and squinted down at the figured trying to get a better look at them. Andie skidded to a halt behind him and bumped into him slightly.

Unfortunately for the pair, Nick, John and Anthony were not paying attention to Chris and Andie. The trio were much to interested in an argument they were having involving which of the local paint-ball courses was the coolest. The three runners nearly trampled Andie, causiner her to lurch forward into Chris, which made Chris fall face first into the chilly water and over the edge of the river.

Reacting on instinct, Andie reached out and grabbed Chris's arm as he fell over. Unfortunately for Andie, Chris pulled her right along with him.

Andie's breath caught in her throat as they fell over the edge of the waterfall. The water didn't seem quite so beautiful as it had moments earlier. In fact, it now seemed like a menacing beast just waiting to swallow her whole. Just as her entire body was about to fall over, she felt someone's hand grab her slick ankle.

Andie and Chris's descent stopped immediately.

They hung over the edge of the falls, Andie's hand gripping Chris's right arm. He looked up at her, the water ran into his face as he looked. Andie was completely soaked, her black tank top was completely stuck to her body. Her dark red hair had fallen out of it's pony-tail and was now a dark brown color. The expression she wore on her face was an interesting mix between horror, worry and annoyance. Chris reached out with his left hand to hold onto Andie's other available arm.

"ARE YOU OKAY?" She screamed down at him, trying to be louder than the river flowing down around her.

"JUST A LITTLE WET, YOU?"

"SAME THING HERE! DID YOU SEE THOSE PEOPLE BY THE TREES?" She hollered down to him.

"YEA, WHO ARE THEY?"

"I DON'T KNOW!" Andie then looked over at the place where she had seen the group, only to discover that they weren't there anymore. "THEY'RE GONE!"

"WHAT!" Chris asked in amazement, Andie nodded her head in the direction the people had been. Chris did his best to turn around and look. He felt his arms slip ever so slightly from Andie's hands and looked up at her in panic.

"DON'T DO THAT!" Andie shouted at him.

"SORRY!" He shouted back, his grip tightened on her forearms.

"HOW ARE YOU HANGING THERE?" he shouted, suddenly realizing that they both should be at the bottom of the river.

"SOMEONE GRABBED MY ANKLE!" Andie shouted down at him, Andie twisted around to see who had was holding onto her ankle, but she couldn't see through the water pounding on her face.

Up above the waterfall, Nick was on his knees holding onto Andie's leg. The water had soaked through his shorts and was jumping up at his shirt. John dropped down beside him and grabbed Andie's other ankle.

Anthony cupped his hands over his mouth and yelled: "A-A-A-ALEX!" Alex turned his blue eyes around to see Nick on his knees, with John beside him. They were holding onto something below the water. Anthony stood above them, motioning for Alex to come over. He noticed that Andie and Chris were _not _with the group. Alex swore under his breath and ran as fast he could over to three boys, not noticing the figures hiding behind the trees nearby.

"Where are Andie and Chris?" he asked as he reached Anthony. Anthony pointed over the edge of the falls. Alex leaned over the edge to see Andie and Chris caught in the water, their bodies playing victim to the constant fall of water. Alex pulled Anthony back, away from the edge.

"Well, pull them up." He said his tone full of frustration. John and Nick tried to pull them up, but the stones underneath them were too slippery and they fell forwards, soaking themselves further.

Alex squatted down and looked over the edge of the falls again. Andie was holding onto Chris's arms, they were talking to each other, but Alex couldn't tell what they were saying.

"YOU'RE SLIPPING!" Andie shouted down at Chris as the boys' first attempt at pulling them up failed.

Chris let go of Andie for a second with one hand and reached up her arm further to try and get a better grip. However, try as he might, the water made her arm slippery and almost impossible to grip. His hand slid down her arm to her wrist.

"I CAN'T GRIP YOUR ARM!" He shouted up at her. Chris's mind began to race; if he fell down he would surely die. The water was not deep enough for him to land safely in it, not to mention the rocks that would be at the bottom.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Legolas stopped singing when he saw the group of six people crossing Nimrodel.

"Aragorn." Legolas said and nodded towards the group.

Aragorn looked up at the group of people and saw one of them, the smallest of the group, appearing to be female, staring down at them. She made a motion to the person in front of her and he looked down at them. He stopped suddenly and she almost ran into him.

Aragorn turned around abruptly.

"Hide the half-lings, and our belongings. Boromir, Legolas, come with me. Gimli, stay here with the hobbits, we will return shortly." Aragorn turned away from Gimli as he did what he was told, and began to climb the steep slope up to the top of the waterfall; his sword strapped to his side.

"Do you believe them to be spies of the enemy?" Legolas asked, his eyes upon the group once more. They appeared to be crowded around a certain point at the edge of the waterfall. Legolas looked down the waterfall and saw that two of their company had fallen over the edge.

"I do not know, but we must at least find out who they are. They do not look like orcs, so I doubt that they are the enemy. If they are not we must at least warn them of the danger that comes from Moria." Aragorn replied.

"Do you think that is wise?" Boromir asked, "Offering our help to those that we do not know. Looks can be deceiving Aragorn, surely you know this?"

Aragorn did not reply to Boromir, merely keeping on his path up the slope. When they reached the top they hid behind trees.

"There is another one of their company here," Legolas whispered to Aragorn as the elf motioned towards the river. Aragorn risked a peek around the edge of the tree and saw a boy, not more than the age of 16, running away from the river and into the forest.

He turned back towards the river at the call of " A-A-A-ALEX!" from one of the other members of the company. Legolas heard him curse under his breath as the boy began to run back towards the river.

Aragorn cautiously came out from behind the tree and started to walk towards the group. Boromir and Legolas followed him. The people on the river, whoever they were, did not notice the three warriors creeping silently towards them.

One member of the group, a red-headed boy, was standing off to the side and was closest to Aragorn, Boromir, and Legolas. Aragorn locked his gaze with Legolas and nodded his head towards the unsuspecting young man. Legolas crept up silently behind him and pinched the nerve that was just below his neck. Anthony began to fall towards the water. Legolas caught him around the waist before he crashed into the river and dragged him the short distance to shore.

Aragorn and Boromir waited for Legolas to return to them before they set off again towards the unsuspecting group. Silently they crept towards the cross country team, their feet barely making a sound as they waded in the water. Aragorn silently unsheathed his sword, Boromir quickly copying him. Legolas's hand rested idly on his white sword, ready for action.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Alright, try again." Alex said to John and Nick. They gave a great heave and managed to pull Andie up a few inches.

"Good, get your footing and pull again." Alex directed, "Anthony," he started to turn towards the spot he had left Anthony, "Get over here so you ca…" his voice died out as he came nose to point with a nasty looking sword. Its wielder was a tall and gruff looking man with light brown hair.

A sword was placed against the throat of Nick and John as well. They immediately tensed and stopped their efforts in pulling Andie.

Andie sighed in exasperation as she felt her self being lowered down. She tried to look up at the boys but water ran into her eyes, making it impossible to see anything.

"WHAT ARE THEY DOING?" Chris yelled at Andie, his arms were beginning to grow tired; he wouldn't be able to hold on for much longer.

"WHAT MAKES YOU THINK I WOULD KNOW?" She screamed back.

At the top of the waterfall, Alex was trying very hard not to panic.

"Who are you?" The tall man asked him.

"My name is Alex, I'm a part of the George Washington Cross Country team."

Not fully understanding what he was saying, Aragorn had never heard of George Washington, he asked the following question: "What are you doing at the river Nimrodel?"

Alex stared at him blankly.

"Answer me." Aragorn commanded, Alex jumped at the sound of his powerful voice.

"I don't know what you're talking about." Alex replied.

"The Nimrodel, it is the river in which you are standing in." Legolas said to Alex.

"We're here for a cross country meet, we got lost in the woods, and I was taking my team back to our coach." Boromir shook his head slightly and glanced over at Aragorn.

Aragorn was confused, to say the least. Who exactly were these people who claimed to be the "George Washing Cross Country team"?

Suddenly a cry was heard from below. Alex sprung to the side of the falls and glanced down, momentarily disregarding Aragorn's sword. Andie and Chris were still barely hanging there.

"CHRIS, YOU HAVE TO HOLD ON!" Andie shouted down at him as she reached down to grab hold of his arm once again.

"I'M SORRY! MY ARMS ARE TIRED!" Andie swore under her breath and gripped Chris's slippery arm as best she could.

"HURRY UP!" She shouted to the boys up top as loud as she could possibly yell. She got a mouthful of water for her troubles and started to cough. More water went into her mouth and she coughed harder, her grip on Chris's arm loosened slightly as the coughs wracked her body.

Alex heard Andie shout and turned back towards Aragorn.

"Please," he pleaded, "we have to get them back up." his

Aragorn nodded his approval, and lowered his sword. Legolas and Boromir did the same, and John and Nick visibly relaxed. Their grip on Andie's legs tightened and they heaved with all their might. Andie began to come up slowly.

"HOLD ON ANDIE!" Alex shouted down below to her. He did not here a response come from her.

Andie's coughing quickly turned into choking as the water flowed into her mouth, making it hard, if not impossible, for her to breathe. Her grip on Chris steadily started to loosen as the coughs continued, becoming harsher as they went.

Then her grip failed altogether, and the coughing-fit stopped. Chris held on for dear life to Andie's arms. Her body was slowly being pulled up until finally she was all the way up top, Chris swung his legs over the top of the falls and sat down, exhausted. He didn't notice the three men standing at the top, eyeing him suspiciously.

As soon as Andie was at the top of the falls and she did not sit up by herself, Alex grabbed her shoulders. He pulled her up out of the water and sat her up. Her eyes were closed and her head lolled to the side.

"Why isn't she breathing?" Alex asked, panic stricken.

"She swallowed some water and started coughing down there." Chris said and crawled over to Andie and Alex, still not noticing the three men. Nick and John ran over to Andie's side also.

"She needs mouth-to-mouth." Alex said and turned towards Nick, John and Chris.

They stared blankly back at him.

"Why don't you do it?" Nick asked and grinned.

Alex turned back towards Andie. If he didn't do something, she was going to die soon. Before he could make a decision the blonde man had taken Andie and was carrying her off to the shore.

It was at that moment that Chris finally noticed the three people, and their swords.

He leaned over and whispered in Alex's ear, "Who are these people?" Alex shrugged in reply and got up and followed the blonde man to shore. John, Nick and Chris followed him.

The blonde man had Andie lying on her back; he brought his ear down to her mouth. Without hesitation he brought his mouth down upon hers and breathed into it. After a few seconds of this, Andie's eyes opened and she started to cough, sputtering water all over the place.

The blonde man was immediately on his feet. He backed away and stood next to Aragorn and Boromir who had followed the group to shore.

"Are you alright?" Chris asked Andie.

"I'll live," she then turned to John and Nick, "What took you so long?" She looked around and, noticing an absence of one of their team members, asked: "where's Anthony?"

Alex looked around, realizing that his stuttering team-mate was missing. His eyes fell upon Anthony's body, leaning up against a tree. Alex turned towards the three men.

"Did you do that?" Alex asked, the venom in his question making him sound a lot braver then he felt.

"They will be fine." One of the men, who had a reddish colored hair and had not spoken before that moment, said.

"Who are you?" Alex asked, not prepared for the answer that they would give or the effect it would have on his life in the near future.


	2. Chapter 2

CHAPTER 2

Previously- "Who are you?" Alex asked, not prepared for the answer that they would give in time or the effect it would have on his life in the near future.

"Who we are does not concern you." Aragorn replied. He then turned towards the other two men with him. He bent his head low and whispered to them so that the cross country team could not hear them.

"I do not believe them to be spies of the enemy." He began, "they appear to be mere adolescents and do not carry any weapons that I can see." Legolas and Boromir nodded in agreement.

"What shall we do with them then?" Boromir asked.

"We shall warn them of the threat that is coming this way." Aragorn replied. He turned back towards the group which was now crowded around the boy that Legolas had disabled.

"Is he dead?" Nick asked, poking Anthony in the side. His body moved ever so slightly before settling at a different angle against the tree.

"No, I don't think so, but something's wrong with them." Andie said, glancing from Anthony to the three males who were now staring at their group inquisitively.

"I don't know what's wrong with him, but we'd better get back to coach and get help," Chris said, "and stay away from them." He said, nodding in the three mysterious men's direction.

"We mean you no harm." The blonde one said, raising his hands and walking towards the group.

"We knew not if you were of the enemy." The one with reddish brown hair added.

"What enemy?" Alex asked, not knowing who they were talking about.

Aragorn stared into Alex's eyes, how could he not know what enemy he spoke of? He looked in turn at each of his companions; all of them carried the same confused expression.

"Do you not know of the Dark Lord?" the dark-haired man asked, his voice lowered.

Alex looked at his friends. Andie was staring at the man as if he was insane. Nick and John both wore identical expressions of confusion. Chris looked tired and annoyed.

"Um…we don't know what you're talking about." Alex said, looking back at the tall man.

Aragorn looked into Alex's eyes a saw the pure confusion mulling about in his blue pools.

"You truly have no idea where you are and who we speak of?" The tall man asked once more. Alex shook his head in reply and stared back at the man. He sighed in frustration.

"You will come with us." He said, making a split second decision that he hoped he wouldn't regret later. The man with the reddish brown hair immediately objected to this decision.

"Aragorn, you can't be serious? We don't even know who they are or where they come from."

"Boromir," Aragorn said as he rose, "please, if they do not know of the Dark Lord or of any of our enemies…"

Boromir cut him off, "How can you trust them, they could be spies." He turned towards the group and glared at them all, looking them up and down.

"They are only adolescents, I do not think that they are spies. Please calm yourself Boromir." Aragorn explained to Boromir, taking a step towards him. The look in Aragorn's eyes was enough to convince Boromir and he looked at the ground.

"Fine, but I do not approve." Aragorn, satisfied with Boromir's response, turned back towards the team.

"Come, by nightfall this land will be crawling with orcs and goblins." He then stood and walked back towards Gimli and the hobbits, trusting that the team would follow him.

The team stared at his retreating back incredulously and did not move. When Aragorn did not hear them behind him, he stopped and looked back at the team.

"You must follow me or you will perish in these lands."

Alex was about to say something, but Chris spoke first.

"Uh, we really have to get back."

"To where?" Aragorn asked, becoming inpatient, the orcs were not far behind them.

"To our Coach, he should be waiting for us. If we don't come back soon he'll probably think we got lost." Alex said.

"We _are_ l-l-l-lost." John mumbled under his breathe. Nick smiled slightly at the comment.

"And besides," Andie added, "We can't leave Anthony behind." She pointed to the slumped figure to her side.

"We would not leave him behind." The blonde man spoke once more, "he should be reviving soon enough."

"Where is your coach?" Aragorn asked, looking at Alex.

"Back at the starting line, near the High School." Alex said plainly, as if this was common knowledge. Aragorn looked at Legolas and Boromir who were both staring at the dark-haired boy.

"You must be mistaken, I assure you there are no such places here. The nearest civilization is not for at least two leagues." Aragorn explained, "Please, you must come with us or you will surely die."

Alex looked at his team mates. Andie was narrowing her eyes at Aragorn, Nick and John were both looking at each other in confusion. Chris looked at Alex and mouthed the word "leagues", a question clearly on his face. Alex shrugged and stood up.

"But that's not possible. Right on the other side of the trees is the track, I've been here before."

"Then you are mistaken, this forest goes on for sixteen leagues, the other side would take at least two days to reach." Aragorn said, not bothering to turn around.

"We'd better follow him." Nick said as he nodded his head towards Aragorn who had stopped once more and turned around in impatience at the team.

"Yea, he looks like he's about ready to kill us." Andie said as she stood up.

"What about Anthony, he's not awake yet." John said as he rose also.

"Wake him up." Chris said and walked over to the unconscious red-head. He shook Anthony by the shoulder to no avail. Nick smiled mischievously and walked over to the water. He made a cup with his hands and scooped up some of the cool liquid.

"I've always wanted to do this." He said as he walked towards Anthony. He threw the water on him and laughed as Anthony woke with a start.

"W-W-W-WHAT ARE YOU D-D-D-DOING?" Anthony asked as he spluttered the water out of his mouth.

"It's time to go." Alex said, smiling slightly.

"Go w-w-where?" Anthony asked as he stood. Anthony stared around the team, at Andie and Chris's wet form, the three people he did not recognize, before glancing at Alex.

"I have no idea, we just have to go." Alex said and finally followed Aragorn down to where he now stood.

"I th-th-th-thought you knew w-where we w-w-were." Anthony mumbled as he walked towards Alex. Chris, Andie, John, and Nick were quick to follow. Boromir and the un-named blonde person followed behind the group.

The group of nine people made their way down the steep slope by the water. The hill was almost vertical; the group had to be extremely careful climbing down it. On more than one occasion, one of the group slipped, including Aragorn and the man Boromir. The un-named male, however, never slipped once. In fact, he seemed to descend the slope with relative ease.

"Have you noticed how Blondie over there hasn't slipped once?" Andie asked John, as she stepped down carefully onto a rock. John looked down at "Blondie", as Andie called him; he was smiling at something as he talked quietly with Aragorn.

"Nick can't even go down a hill like this the way he is," Andie added.

Nick was infamous for his ability to go up and down hills carelessly. Alex was no doubt the fastest in the group, but Nick kicked his ass and back when it came time to hills. Sometimes it was almost as if he was flying. As if on cue, Nick slid a little ways down the slop, but caught himself after a few seconds.

"See." Andie said and then continued her slow and clumsy descent.

The rest of the trip down the slope was made in silence, except for the occasional roll of some rocks and leaves. Eventually the group made it to the base.

Aragorn led them further down the banks when he suddenly stopped by a clearing that appeared to be a road.

"Master Gimli," he called out into the air, "We are in no danger."

A short figure, assumedly Gimli, with a red, frizzy beard stepped out from behind a tree. He had a dark, metal helmet on his head and wielded a rather heavy looking axe in his hands. A few trees to the right, two more figures stepped out. They were both short, shorter than Gimli, and had brown curly hair. Two more figures came still, both of them also bore short curly hair, one's hair was darker than the other.

"Who are they laddie?" Gimli asked, pointing his axe in the direction of the newcomers.

"I know not, they are not followers of the enemy. In fact, they have no knowledge of any of the enemies of this land." Aragorn explained, "they surely would have died if we had left them."

Gimli nodded to himself in agreement, yet, his eyes remained on the group.

"We must move on. We have stayed here longer at the road already longer than wise."

"Are we to bring them with us?" Asked one of the smaller people.

"We are Pippin." Aragorn answered and then motioned for the group to follow. They began to walk through trees, off the road. The large group of people followed Aragorn into the forest. Immediately following Aragorn were Pippin and his three similarly sized friends as well as Gimli and "Blondie". The cross-country team followed next with Boromir bringing up the rear.

The six cross-country team members were wearing only shorts, tank tops or t-shirts while the remaining eight were decked out in full travel gear complete with weaponry. Combined with the fact that there was a large variance in height among the small band of travelers, the group was quite a sight to behold.

After a few minutes of silence, Pippin began to talk.

"Where did you find them Aragorn?" He asked as he glanced back at the team.

"At the top of the Nimrodel falls."

"And what were they doing there?" He asked.

"I do not know Pippin."

"Well then, how can you trust them?" He whispered, trying not to be overheard by the cross country team and failing miserably.

"They do not appear to be threatening; I explained the rest to Gimli." He said, decisively ending the conversation. Pippin sighed and hung back with the three people who were around his size. He was talking with them, and every so often he would glance back at the newcomers following him.

"Is it j-j-just me, or is he t-t-t-talking about us?" Anthony asked the team.

"Wow, did you fry a couple of brain cells thinking up that one?" John asked and then rolled his eyes. Anthony frowned and kept walking.

"That was mean," Andie stated, "He didn't do anything to you."

"He was being stupid."

"That doesn't mean you have to act like an ass towards him, does it?" Andie asked, slowly getting angry. It's not that she liked Anthony or anything, but John was being a bit unfair.

"Sure it does." John answered with a mischievous smirk, knowing it would tick Andie off. She glared at his back.

"Burning holes in him with your laser vision won't do anything." Chris whispered into her ear jokingly. Andie sighed and looked down at the ground and continued to walk.

A few minutes later Pippin turned back towards the cross country team. The small hobbit then slowed his walking speed down until he was side-by-side with Andie.

"Hullo." He said up at her and fell into pace next to her.

"Hi." Andie said uncertainly, sizing up her walking partner.

"I'm Pippin." He said, smiling up at Andie. She half smiled back.

"I'm Andie, pleased to meet you." She held out her hand which he grasped with his small one and performed one brisk up and down movement.

"Where are you from Andie? I'm from the Shire, along with my friends up there." Pippin said as he nodded his curly head in the direction of his three companions.

"Oh…well, I've never heard of the Shire, but _I'm_ from a place called Virginia."

"Virginia?" Pippin declared, puzzled. His eyebrows rose in confusion and he stared off in the distance for a moment. After a couple seconds of silence he declared, "I don't think I've ever heard of that place before."

"Really?" Andie asked, just as confused as Pippin.

"Aye, I don't think there's a place named Virginia in all of Middle-earth."

"M-M-M-Middle-earth?" Anthony asked aloud, eavesdropping on their conversation.

"Where the hell is that?" Chris asked.

"What do you mean, where is it? You're walking on it." Pippin said, thinking that Andie and her friends were insane. An uneasy silence followed this statement. The group continued to walk, Pippin still at Andie's side.

"_So_," Andie began, breaking the silence "you're saying that we're in a place called Middle-earth?" Pippin nodded his head eagerly in response.

"You're quite sure?"

Pippin nodded some more.

"You're absolutely positive." Andie prodded, her eyebrows pulling together.

Pippin bobbed his head enthusiastically.

"I'm absolutely sure I'm positive."

"Uh huh… ALEX!" Andie called in her captain's direction.

"Yeah?" He called back, turning towards Andie. Andie waved her hands, motioning for him to come towards her. He obliged, and was soon standing adjacent to her.

"What is it?" He asked. Andie nodded at Pippin and said: "Tell him where we are."

"Um, you're in Middle-earth?" Pippin didn't seem as sure of his answer anymore.

"What're you talking about; we're in Jefferson National Forest." Alex said to the little man.

"No. You're not." Pippin said quietly.

Alex's thoughts began to race, "Middle-earth"? Where was that? Did that place even exist? If it did, how'd they end up there?

"Are you sure?" Alex asked.

"_Yes,"_ Pippin groaned, tired of the newcomers questions.

Alex sighed and walked back up to where he was before in the line.

The atmosphere suddenly became slightly more tense and Pippin became nervous. Andie was quiet, as were the rest of her friends. Pippin decided to try and break this new-found tension with a little bit of friendly conversation.

"So, Andie," he began. "Who're the rest of your friends?" He looked up at her hopefully.

"Oh, sorry Pippin. That's Chris," she pointed to the person directly behind her. Pippin waved at the blonde headed boy who waved back, "that's Anthony," she pointed to the boy behind her who had flaming red hair, brown eyes, and lots of freckles, " in front of him is Nick," she pointed to Nick who had curly brown hair and brown eyes. He was fairly tall, and gangly. "In front of Nick is John," Andie scowled as she pointed to the boy with short brown hair, "and you already met Alex." She concluded.

"How old are you all?" Pippin asked, they didn't look to be very old.

"Oh well, I'll be turning seventeen in a month or so, Chris and Alex are both 18, and Nick, John and Anthony are all sixteen."

"Wow," Pippin said, slightly amazed, "You're a young group, what are you doing out here alone?"

"That's an interesting question Pippin. We thought we were somewhere else. We _were_ here for a competition." Before he could ask what type of competition, Andie asked a question of her own, "What about your friends?"

"Oh, forgive me, I got carried away. Well, up there is Sam," he pointed at one of the shorter men with light brown, almost red hair, "next to him is Merry", he pointed to another shorter male with brown curly hair, he concluded by pointing to the last incredibly short person complete with a dark curly mop of hair and a thoughtful expression on his face, "and then there's Frodo."

"Those are interesting names." Andie said.

"Not in the Shire they're not." Pippin said defensively.

"Sorry." Andie said sheepishly.

"It's alright, I'm sure they do sound different."

"What about him?" Andie asked, pointing to "Blondie".

"Oh, that's Legolas."

"Legolas?" Andie repeated, "is he from the Shire too?"

"Oh no, there are no elves in the Shire. Legolas is from Mirkwood." Pippin answered airily. Andie looked over at Legolas.

"Elves?" She asked, shocked.

"Well, yes. You couldn't tell by his ears?" Andie looked over at Legolas and at his ears. They were pointed.

"Whoa…" she muttered under her breath.

"What's wrong?" Pippin asked, confused once more. Andie didn't answer him and instead turned to tell Chris of this new development only to find that he was already staring at Legolas, his eyes wide in astonishment. Chris looked at Andie with an identical mask of astonishment.

"Haven't you ever heard of an elf before?" Pippin asked the stunned group.


	3. Chapter 3

CHAPTER 3

Previously: "Haven't you ever heard of an elf before?" Pippin asked the stunned group.

Andie didn't respond and neither did Chris. The both stared ahead at the blonde man in blank astonishment.

"What's wrong?" Pippin asked, confused once more. Chris looked at Andie.

"Where are we?"

Pippin sighed.

"I've already told you that."

"No, he knows that Pippin, it wasn't really a question, he was just, uh, oh never mind." Andie said, giving up explaining Chris's response. She turned her gaze back to Legolas only to find that he was looking up at her, a grin on his face. She looked back down at Pippin, and her cheeks turned red.

"So Pippin," Andie began, "Where are you all headed?" She asked, changing the subject..

"Oh," his voice suddenly became low, "I don't know if I'm supposed to tell you."

"What do you mean?" Andie's smile began to fade, "What? Are you on some deep dark quest or something?" She laughed a little. Pippin did not. Her smile ended altogether and she looked down at Pippin with a serious expression on her face.

Andie opened her mouth to inquire further when Pippin suddenly declared, "Um…er… Frodo's calling me." With that he ran off in Frodo's direction. Andie sighed.

"A bit secretive, isn't he?" Chris asked Andie as they continued to walk. Andie shrugged and continued to trudge along. After a few seconds of silence, Anthony turned around to face Andie. John, and Nick turned their heads towards her too, identical evil smiles plastered on their faces.

"Hey Andie…" Nick called.

"What?" she replied, not sure what he was going to say, but knowing deep down that it was intended to tease her in some way.

"It looks like you got a new boyfriend." He then burst out laughing and turned away from her.

"Ha. Ha. Ha. You're just _so_ damn funny." Andie said sarcastically and rolled her eyes. Chris was snickering behind her. She turned to face him.

"What's so funny?" She demanded. He shook his head and motioned for her to keep walking. She huffed at him and turned around and stared at the ground intently.

After a few more moments, the company stopped walking. They were in a cluster of trees, some of which hung over the stream that was Nimrodel. The trees were very wide across, but their height was so large that it was impossible to guess how high into the sky the trees reached.

Legolas stopped and leaned up against one of the trees.

"I will climb up," he began, "I will see what the shape and growth is of the Mellyrn tree, as I have not climbed up this tree before."

"We're not going to sleep up there are we? The trees are for the birds. If it can provide rest for us than it is indeed a marvelous tree." Pippin said, looking slightly worried.

"If you do not wish to sleep among the trees then dig a hole in the ground, if it is the way of the Hobbits. However, you will have to dig swift and deep, if you want to stay hidden from the orcs." With that he began to climb the tree.

The cross country team stared at Legolas in awe as he jumped off the ground and grabbed hold of the tree. He made no noise as he did so.

Their shock was short lived, however, for as soon as he had hold of the tree a voice shouted from the tree.

"_Daro!"_ it commanded. Legolas dropped to the ground, a look of fear and shock in his eyes.

"Do not move or speak." Legolas whispered. The cross country team froze. Alex looked up through the trees, trying to see what had alarmed Legolas.

As he looked up through the canopy of leaves, a soft laughter fell from the trees followed by some sort of speech that Alex did not recognize. Legolas looked up through the trees and any trace of fear upon his face vanished as he responded in the same strange tongue.

Two of the little ones began to converse amongst themselves. At one point Legolas turned towards them and said something and nodded his head. He then spoke louder for the rest of the group to hear.

"They heard my voice across the Nimrodel, and knew that I was of their Northern kindred, and therefore they did not hinder our crossing. They ask that I climb up with Frodo while the others wait at the foot of the tree until it is decided what to do." Legolas said and then climbed up a ladder that had fallen down to meet him. Frodo followed up behind him, at a slower pace however.

Alex watched as Frodo retreated up the tree, following Legolas.

"What was that all about?" he whispered, turning towards the rest of his friends.

"I dunno." John answered, also in a whisper. Chris and Andie were talking about something together, they kept whispering in each other's ears. Their faces wore expressions of confusion and disbelief.

Alex walked around John, Nick, and Anthony, making his way towards Andie and Chris.

"I'm telling you," Andie was saying, "That's not normal. And what about Pippin and his friends? They aren't really midgets," she looked over at Pippin was standing next to the tree Frodo had climbed up looking rather nervous. "But they aren't children either. How do you explain that?" Andie looked at Chris, her green eyes flashing.

"I don't know, but I mean, come on, this can't be real, can it?"

"What are you two talking about?" Alex asked. Andie looked at him, then at Chris, who nodded. She grabbed the collar of Alex's shirt and brought him closer to her. She leaned in towards his ear.

"The blonde one that was with us, his name is Legolas. Pippin up there called him an elf." She released the collar of his shirt. Alex raised an eye brow as he straightened up and glanced around. He beckoned John, Nick, and Anthony towards them. They came over and the group formed a little circle; their heads bent in towards each other.

"W-W-W-What is it?" Anthony asked, wondering why he had been called over to this little huddle.

"Well," Alex sighed, "I don't think we're in any place I know about."

"What do you mean?" John asked, not really catching on.

"It means we're not on earth dim wit." Andie said and glared at John.

"How do you figure?" Nick asked, raising one eye brow at her,

"You mean, besides the fact that these people carry bows and arrows, and swords instead of guns? The fact that Pippin and his friends are short but don't looks like midgets, and that the blonde guy who was with us is an elf?" Andie raised her eyebrows back at him.

"So, unless we're stuck in a really bad dream…" Chris trailed off. Nick turned to Anthony and pinched him hard on the arm.

"OW!" Anthony exclaimed and rubbed the spot where Nick had pinched him.

"Nope," Nick said, satisfied, "We're all awake."

Andie smiled slightly.

"If we're not asleep, then where are we?" John asked.

"Pippin said we're in 'Middle-earth', wherever that is." Andie said.

"Yea, thanks Andie that really helps." Nick said sarcastically. Andie glared at him.

Before she could say anything back, a hand grabbed her shoulder roughly and turned her around. The angry face of Boromir was only an inch away from her nose. He released her shoulder and glared around at the rest of them.

"What are you all talking about?"

"N-N-N-Nothing." Anthony responded without even considering the question. He mentally kicked himself at what he had said; Nick kicked him in real life. Anthony looked down at his feet and avoided eye contact with the people around him.

"Is that so?"

No one made a move to reply.

"Boromir," Aragorn called, "Leave them be." Boromir drew himself up to his full height and looked down at Anthony's bowed head.

"No more private meetings." He then turned and walked away.

"Someone has a stick up their butt." Nick muttered and shook his head. Andie turned back towards the group.

"We can keep talking later." She said and then turned around and walked over to Pippin. The rest of the team followed her, having nothing else to do.

Before she had reached Pippin, Legolas jumped down in front of her. She jumped back slightly; she had not heard him coming down the tree. He walked over to Aragorn and spoke quickly to him. Aragorn nodded his head. Legolas turned towards the hobbits and motioned towards the ladder as he spoke to them.

The hobbits sighed and then trudged over to the ladder. They dropped everything except their blankets and began to climb the silver rope ladder. Aragorn had begun to bury the rest of their packs in a pile of leaves. Legolas then turned towards the cross country team.

"You two," he said, pointing to Anthony, and John "Will stay with the hobbits up that tree." He pointed towards the tree that Pippin had disappeared up. "The rest of you will sleep in the _talan_ in the next tree." He motioned towards a tree that also had a silver rope ladder.

Anthony and John looked at each other before they climbed up their specified tree. Alex, Chris, Andie, and Nick started to walk towards the other tree. Boromir got there before them and climbed up the rope ladder. Alex, Chris, Andie, and Nick followed Boromir up the ladder.

At the top of the ladder was a flat wooden area, almost like a tree house. Alex hoisted himself up to the platform and stood up. There were two other figures on the platform besides Boromir. They wore gray hoods and were looking out over the edge of the platform. Alex moved aside and offered Chris a hand up into the _talan_.

Andie and Nick were immediately behind Chris. Andie glared slightly at Boromir's form; she had not forgiven him yet for interrupting their conversation earlier.

"Nice view." Nick said as he looked up through the tops of the tree. Andie, Alex and Chris looked up through the leaves to glance at the coming night. The beginnings of stars winked down at the small group; they were brighter than any stars the group had ever seen..

"Wow…" Chris said, the admiration clear in his voice.

A few moments later Gimli climbed up the tree, huffing and puffing all the way. Aragorn followed him shortly, Legolas right after him, making no noise what so ever.

Aragorn and Legolas sat down in front of Alex, Andie, Chris and Nick.

"We need to speak with you." Aragorn said.

OOOOOOOOOOOO

On the other wooden platform, John and Anthony were having an interesting conversation with the Hobbits while they ate a light supper provided by the elves.

"So," Anthony began while eating some food, "are there m-m-m-more p-p-p-people who are your s-s-s-size?" John nudged him in the ribs.

"W-W-What?" He asked and then mumbled under his breath, "It was just a question," he turned to face the hobbits.

"He wasn't trying to be rude or anything." John finished for Anthony.

"Oh yea," the one called Merry began, "There's a whole lot of us down in the Shire. Most people don't know about us though." He frowned slightly and then continued to eat.

The conversation between Pippin, Merry, Frodo, Sam, Anthony, and John continued in much the same way. Anthony or John would ask a question about the hobbits, they would answer. Every once in a while the hobbits would ask a question and John, and Anthony would do their best to answer.

These questions were simplistic but hard to answer.

"Why are you wearing those types of clothes?"

"Where are you from?"

"How'd you get here?"

"Why did you come here?"

In the normal world, people would have answered these questions with:

"We're working out."

"Virginia"

"We ran."

"We're here for a meet."

This was not the normal world. This was Middle-earth. So when they answered these questions with their simple responses, the Hobbits stared at them with vacant expressions.

Then they would ask for a full explanation of the guys' original explanation.

Needless to say their conversation was rather long and seemingly endless for Anthony and John. So, once it was time for the group to go to sleep, the two boys were both relieved to be free of their discussion.

They used the borrowed skins and cloaks from the elves, wrapped themselves up and tried to go to sleep. They were rather uneasy about where in the hell they were, but they were also tired. Now that they each had a full stomach, it was only a matter of time before they fell asleep.

Back in the other _talan_, Andie, Alex, Chris and Nick were having a long and serious conversation with Aragorn, Legolas, Gimli and Boromir. The atmosphere was definitely heavier in that _talan_ than in the one containing the Hobbits, despite how close the two were in proximity.

After they had all eaten, Aragorn began their conversation.

"It is quite clear to us all that you are foreign in these parts," he began, Andie, Alex, Chris and Nick paying rapt attention, "Of course, this could all be a façade, set down by Saruman, or Sauron himself."

Andie, Alex, Chris and Nick glanced at each other, having no idea who in the hell he was talking about.

"Um…" Nick began, "We _really_ have no idea who you're talkin' about."

"Aye, the spies of Sauron or Saruman would say that." The one called Gimli said.

Andie sighed and rolled her eyes, this was straight out of a spy movie. She didn't really listen to the rest of their conversation. She wasn't really paying attention. As far as she was concerned, this could simply be a very devoted group of nerds who were playing dungeons and dragons. She had heard of people having surgeries performed on their ears to make them look pointed, Pippin and his friends could very well be just a group of midgets who were proportioned correctly. The more she thought about it, the more sense it made.

Andie mentally slapped herself; how could she have gone along with this silly façade for so long? Her family was probably worried sick about her by now;night had descended upon the group . Their coach had probably moved from being absolutely livid that part of the team had missed a race to worried about what the hell happened to them. As Andie watched the conversation unfold before her into the late night hour, she grew steadily more impatient.

Her annoyance was beginning to rise when the questioning and lecturing did not step, even though the boys clearly could not answer their questions.

Having had enough, Andie rose. Her green eyes glared at the people sitting in front of her. The two cloaked figures who had been in the _talan_ earlier, had left already to give the group some sort of privacy. They were out patrolling the perimeter near Nimrodel, and were currently on their way back to the _talans_, or flets as some called them, to warn the groups of the incoming orcs.

However, they were not there at that current moment and could not warn the group of the incoming enemy.

"You know what?" Andie said, not really waiting for a response. She made her way over to the hole in the floor and the rope ladder.

"I've had enough of this crap. I can just leave right now, there's nothing stopping me. I want to go home, and I will go home. The joke's over people. Goodbye." With that she descended the ladder and jumped lightly onto the ground. She breathed out loudly and looked around. Deciding to go through the woods instead of across the river, Andie jogged around the base of the tree; intending to go off on her own.

Alex, Chris and Nick all were sticking their heads out over the edge of the flet, looking at Andie.

"She must come back, it is not safe." Legolas said. Chris sighed and started to climb towards the ground.

"I'll get her." he said as he went down.

He landed on the ground and then ran off in the direction that Andie had gone in. He found her in a few minutes.

"Andie!" He shouted after her. She stopped and turned around.

"What?" She asked, annoyed.

"Come on, just come back to the little tree-house thingy and we can talk things over."

"Look, it's obvious that they're just a group of uber nerds who are so far stuck into fantasy they can't understand that we don't want to play their stupid Dungeons and Dragons game."

Chris didn't really have an answer for that question. Andie smiled.

"See! They haven't done anything except get us more lost than we were before. I don't about you but it's starting to piss me off"

"Ok, you're right. But at least wait 'till it's light out before you go storming off, we'll leave them in the morning and go back the way we came." Without waiting for an answer, he grabbed her wrist and started to walk back to the "tree-house" as he called it. Andie sighed and twisted her wrist out of his grasp. She began to jog in the direction of the trees. Chris followed her example and they were both jogging through the woods when they reached the trees.

The ladder no longer dangled down to greet them. Andie sighed, exasperated and looked up toward the top of the tree. She couldn't see the platform.

"Are you sure this is the right tree?" She asked Chris, without turning around.

"Positive." He said, and turned towards the river, just to make sure. He looked out over the river and was about to turn back around when he saw movement. He squinted at it, trying to make out the form.

"HELLO!" Andie yelled up at the top of the tree. As Chris continued to try and see through the dark, he became more and more worried.

He saw an object whizzing towards them. Whatever it was, landed at his feet. He bent over to retrieve the slender object. As he brought it closer to his face, he could clearly make out the shape of a very sharp, black arrow head.

"LET THE LADDER DOW…" Andie's cry was cut off by Chris's hand over her mouth and his arm across her waist.

He pulled her close to him, turned around, and backed into the tree. Andie tried to wriggle free, but he was much stronger than she was and he tightened his grip. She stopped moving as she saw figures moving across the river.

Her blood ran cold with fear; whatever was across that river was not very nice.

Chris slowly worked his way around the tree, his back pressed up against it the entire time. He did not stop until they were no longer facing the river. Chris waited with baited breath and silently prayed that whatever had shot at them would continue walking without investigating where his arrow had gone.

Chris didn't have much hope that his prayers would be answered.


	4. Chapter 4

CHAPTER 4

Previously: Chris waited with baited breath and silently prayed that whatever had shot at them would continue walking without investigating where his arrow had gone.

Chris didn't have much hope that his prayers would be answered.

All was silent as Chris and Andie literally held their breaths, waiting to see if whatever was across the river was going to come and meet them. A few moments later they heard the splashing of giant feet crossing the river ungracefully. Andie and Chris's hearts sank.

Andie turned her head to look into Chris's eyes. He looked down at her. Once she was sure she had his attention she nodded towards the dark forest, and looked back up at Chris. Chris smiled down at Andie slightly before nodding his head in agreement; they were going to run for it.

"On the count of three." He whispered into her ear. Andie could feel goose bumps on her arm in anticipation of the fastest run of her life. She smiled slightly.

"One," he began, he lowered his arm from her waist, "Two," he moved out from behind her silently, "Three."

Andie and Chris sprinted off into the woods. They made little noise as they ran, except for the harsh crunch of leaves beneath their feet. Adrenaline pumped through their veins, giving them a surge of energy that spurred them on further. The pair passed tree after tree, they pushed themselves faster as they continued to run. Chris's arms pumped in time with his legs, the breath coming out of his mouth in a steady rhythm that only came from years of running and training. Andie's hair whipped out behind her as she pushed herself harder; all thoughts of this being a silly game had fluttered out of her mind.

After another few minutes of intense running, they slowed down slightly, another five minutes and they had slowed down to a jog and then stopped altogether.

"I think we lost them." Chris said in-between gasps for air.

"Whatever _they_ are…" Andie said as she bent over and leaned on her knees; trying to regain her breath. She wiped her hand across her fore-head, removing the droplets of perspiration that had formed there during their run.

Whilst trying to get their breathing under control, a branch snapped off in the distance and a low murmuring of voices could be heard faintly through the trees. Their heads snapped in the direction of the noise at the same time. They both looked at each other as more noises emitted from the same area; including the crunch of leaves and the continual breaking of small branches that had fallen. Andie sighed and started running once again, Chris just on her heels.

When Chris pulled up beside Andie, Andie glanced over her shoulder and saw figures moving behind them, the same large figures as she had seen across the river. Her eyes grew wide in horror and she ran faster, Chris following her. She turned to the left suddenly, trying to throw off whatever might be following them. Chris, understanding her thinking, turned with her. They ran in that direction for a while, turned again, and switched directions once more.

After a good mile, Andie looked over her shoulder again and was relieved not to see anything pursuing them. She and Chris slowed down and stopped once more.

"I think I just ran the fastes…" Andie cut him off, "Shhhh…" she said, listening for anymore movement. After a few moments Andie sighed with relief.

"I think we really lost them this time." She whispered.

"I hope so, I don't think I'd be able to run anymore anyways." Andie smiled at that and leaned against a tree. She slowly slid down it and plopped onto the ground.

"What do you want to do now?" Chris asked as he sat down next to Andie.

She shrugged, "I don't think I'd be able to find my way back even if it was daylight out."

"So I guess we're stuck here for tonight." Chris said.

"I guess so." Andie said with a yawn.

"What if those things come again?" Chris asked, looking at Andie with slight alarm, the creatures were obviously armed and the pair probably wouldn't be able to out run them again.

"Think we should climb up the tree?" Andie asked, thinking of the flets they had been in before their little run through the woods.

"It'd probably be a good idea." Chris stood up and offered her his hand. She grabbed it and pulled herself upwards.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

After Chris left the _talan,_ Nick, Alex, Aragorn, Legolas, Gimli and Boromir looked out over the edge of the platform and through the trees, watching Chris's retreating form.

"You are sure that he will be able to find her?" Legolas asked, unsure of Chris's capability.

Nick nodded. "Yea, Chris is faster than her, he should be able to catch up."

"Yea, but he'll still have to talk her out of running away." Alex added as he looked over at Nick.

"True, but he could just pick her up and carry her back…however uncooperative she might be." Nick said and smiled, picturing Andie kicking and screaming being brought back to the flet.

"So he will succeed?" Aragorn asked, still looking in the direction that Chris had taken off in.

"Yea." Nick and Alex said in unison. After a few more moments, Nick and Alex stopped looking for Chris and turned away from the edge. Boromir was looking at them quizzically.

"What?" Nick asked, trying to figure out why Boromir was staring at him.

"Nothing..." Boromir said as he shook his head.

Nick was about to question him further when a figure dressed in gray appeared through the hole in the floor. He climbed inside noiselessly and pulled the ladder in after him.

"Hey!" Alex said, "Our friends are going to need that."

The figure looked at Alex and then to Aragorn. He said something in the strange tongue that Alex and Nick had heard earlier. Aragorn's eyes grew wide in alarm, as did Legolas's.

"What did he say?" Boromir asked.

"There are orcs headed this way, around one hundred of them." Legolas said.

"What're orcs?" Nick asked, confused.

"Vile creatures, they kill just about everything they come in contact with and are the soldiers of our enemy." Aragorn said.

"Andie and Chris are out there though, if the orc-things find them…" He trailed off, not really wanting to think about what would happen.

"They will most likely be killed." Boromir said grimly and squinted through the leaves once more, looking for the return of Chris, hopefully with Andie.

The group was silent as they waited. Their silence was thick with anticipation and worry; if Chris came back too soon, the orcs would find him; if he stayed out too long the orcs might find him in the forest.

A second or two later, Chris and Andie showed up, just as the orcs were almost directly across the river from them. Nick and Alex grimaced,

"Perfect timing." Nick murmured sarcastically to Alex who nodded his agreement.

Andie walked over to the tree and said something to Chris. Chris said something back and turned and faced the river. Andie turned her face upwards towards the platform.

"HELLO!" She shouted up at the tree. Legolas and Aragorn looked at each other in annoyance and alarm and then back down at the girl. Legolas looked out across to the other side of the river and saw one of the orcs stringing an arrow. The vile beast released his weapon.

Legolas smiled slightly at the poor shot, it landed at Chris's feet. He bent down to pick it up just as Andie began to shout again, louder this time.

"LET THE LADDER DOW…" Chris had quickly covered Andie's mouth and was trying to restrain her. Nick snickered and was smacked upside the head by Alex to get him to shut up. They watched through the hole in the floor as Andie and Chris slowly worked their way around the tree.

They then heard the splashing of the orcs crossing the river. The elf who had brought the ladder up with him, muttered something under his breath. Legolas nodded and stared at the elves, then looked at Andie and Chris.

"Can't we do something?" Alex asked, worried about Andie and Chris.

The elf wearing gray shook his head solemnly,

"There are not enough of us to match them." He said, his voice just barely above a whisper. Alex sighed and turned his attention back towards Andie and Chris. They had moved apart slightly. Alex tilted his head slightly in confusion, what were they doing?

Suddenly both of them shot off into the woods in the direction that Andie had gone off in earlier. Nick smiled to himself, as did Alex.

"What do they think they're doing?" Aragorn asked, thinking that the two people were insane.

"Well, you see, they're running, you know, like walking except faster…" Nick began to explain, sarcasm seeping through his every word.

"Do not mock me," Aragorn said, "They will not be able to outrun the orcs…" He shook his head slightly.

"Sure they will." Alex said reassuringly.

No one replied, they all turned their attention back towards the orcs who were now coming across the river much faster. However, they did not follow Andie and Chris. Instead, they moved downstream further and then turned into the forest.

"Where are they going?" Nick said aloud to everyone in general.

"I know not," said Legolas, "but it is not in the same direction as Andie and Chris."

"Too bad Andie and Chris don't know that." Alex mumbled. Everyone else in the flet silently agreed with Alex. A few moments later the ladder was let down and an elf climbed up.

"What news Haldir?" Aragorn asked.

"We have led the _yrchs _away into a deeper part of the woods. Although this was made harder by some commotion in this direction," at this point he looked around at the group, as if counting them, "Am I not mistaken in saying that there were two others in your group?"

"You are correct Haldir." Aragorn said solemnly.

"Where might they be?"

"One of them, Andie, ran off and Chris went out to retrieve the foolish girl." Aragorn said in a huff, regretting letting Chris run off.

"Will he be able to find her?" Haldir asked.

"He already did." Alex said.

"Then why are they not here right now?"

"They took off when the orcs came." Nick said, he pointed in the direction they headed in, "They went that way."

Haldir looked out in the direction Nick had pointed in and sighed deeply. He rubbed his brow in frustration and glanced back up at the group. He said something quickly in the strange tongue once more to Legolas and Aragorn. Aragorn looked at Boromir with a grim expression.

"What's going on?" Alex asked, as he saw the worried exchange between Legolas, Aragorn, Haldir and Boromir.

"I'm afraid to say that we sent the _yrchs_ in the direction that your friends also went in." Haldir said sadly.

There was an awkward silence as Alex and Nick tried to digest the fact that tomorrow morning Andie and Chris may cease to be.

"So basically what you're saying is that our friends could be dead right now?" Nick asked.

Haldir nodded. Nick's eyes flashed with anger.

"Is there anything we can do now?" Alex asked, trying to be slightly more calm than Nick.

"I can send out someone to look for friends, but I fear if they are not found by morning there will be nothing left to be found." Haldir said, trying to console them.

"Then see that it is done," Aragorn said to Haldir, turning to the rest of the group he continued, "There is nothing more that we can do on this night, I suggest you all try and sleep, we will continue our discussion tomorrow, hopefully in the company of Andie and Chris."

With that said there was nothing left to do but try to sleep. Nick and Alex lay awake quite some time thinking about the fate of their friends and how the day had played out so far.

It had started out like any other meet, the quiet bus ride, the coach telling them about the competition, who to stick with on the other team during the race…typical things that seemed to have the utmost importance at the time. It seemed fate had other plans for them, however. Handing the map to Anthony that one time for a few laughs had turned into something much more than that. Now they were in a place they'd never seen, not even heard of before, stuck with a bunch of people and various creatures who seemed quite keen on getting rid of them, and to top it all off they were supposed to try and sleep while a couple of their friends were in mortal danger.

Eventually Nick drifted off to sleep, unable to resist the delicacy of dreamland any longer. Even as his snores began to permeate the air, Alex was still wide awake. It amazed him how things seemed to change so quickly, ideas of what was important changed from one thing to the next at the will of some higher power unbeknownst to everyone.

As Alex pondered about the fate of his friends, the stars overhead began to fade, the darkness of the night slowly giving way to the pale colors of dawn and the bright sun. While the sun rose slowly, Alex wondered if whatever higher power existed would decide to be kind to his friends, or if it would decide that the world could do without them.

Only time would tell.


End file.
